Council puts more crossing guards in the street—and in danger

No one complained when the City Council added funding last week to hire 80 more crossing guards. It is self-evident—at least for politicians and parents—that crossing guards make streets safer for children. Of the multitude of press releases and statements announcing and responding to the council's move, none bothered to offer data showing children fare better at intersections staffed by crossing guards. Requests for such evidence came up empty; it is not clear that any has been collected.

There is data, however, showing risk to crossing guards themselves, which raises the question of whether putting them in harm’s way justifies whatever safety benefit they might provide.

Statistics on job-related injuries to crossing guards in New York City are also hard to come by, although a Bureau of Labor Statistics staffer who tracks deadly accidents in the city said crossing guard fatalities here are rare—maybe one every six or seven years, she estimated. She had no data on non-fatal injuries.

New York City is probably safer than New Jersey and Connecticut for crossing guards because motorists drive more slowly here and are more accustomed to pedestrians being in the street. But anyone standing in traffic for hours on end is vulnerable, especially in an era of distracted driving, reports show.

“School crossing guards play an important role in the safety of children in route to school, yet these workers are at risk for traumatic injuries,” the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health wrote.

The Municipal Excess Liability Joint Insurance Fund of New Jersey, which represents most of the state’s municipalities, reported a 65% increase in crashes involving crossing guards between 1996 and 2006, deeming the position of school crossing guard one of the more dangerous in municipal government.

“It is very scary out on the street,” one wrote. “[Drivers] are texting, on the phone, eating, putting on make-up and I have even seen one person dressing. I have had a few close calls myself and I am just glad I am there for the kids. I have had people not paying attention go right through my crossing while I am standing in the middle with my [stop] sign up in the air.”

Another commented, “I was a school crossing guard for over 3 years and you cannot believe the number of idiots who think that when we hold up a stop sign, that it does not apply to them. Where I worked it was posted both ways not to make a U-turn, but every day, at least 6 or more flipped a U-turn, some of which almost hitting me and the students crossing the street.”

Wrote a third, “I too was a crossing a guard for a few years, and I just couldn't believe how just blatantly rude people are, their time is more important than the safety of children crossing the road, on one occasion I was barely missed as a guy ran through my crossing.”

One 81-year-old crossing guard who had worked in a small New Jersey town for 15 years wasn’t so lucky: She stepped into a crosswalk on a rainy October morning in 2005, facing away from oncoming traffic, and was run over by an SUV. The 70-year-old driver was on his way to work. He was a crossing guard as well.

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